Daimler India Commercial Vehicles has rolled out its first Bharat Stage VI (BS VI) heavy-duty powertrain from its manufacturing facility at Oragadam, Chennai. Having already received certification for BS VI back (for the 5528 HD truck) in July 2019, DICV’s new milestone comes two-and-a-half years after the introduction of BS IV in July 2017. 

According to Satyakam Arya, MD and CEO, Daimler India Commercial Vehicles, “Daimler Trucks already has eight years of experience delivering over 1.4 million BS VI-equivalent (Euro 6) vehicles to customers. It is, therefore, no surprise we are again leading the industry in the transition to cleaner-emission commercial vehicles.”

DICV’s start of production comes both before the government’s April 2020 BS VI transition deadline and also ahead of its own internal schedule. In 2017, DICV joined a global partnership with Daimler entities in Brazil, Germany and the US with the goal of upgrading key components to BS VI standards by January 2020.

Three months ahead of schedule, DICV is now beginning series production of its BS VI-compliant OM 926 engines and MD 2 Box Aftertreatment systems in India. This engine will be offered with two power options (230 hp and 280 hp), allowing customers "to benefit from robustness, parts localisation and fuel efficiency provided by the six-cylinder classic series engines used in the BS VI range."